Writing Night

Tonight is writing night.  In fact, every Tuesday night is my night to write (thanks, honey!).  What I've found in my short stint as a wanna-be writer is that I can't force a subject if I want to have my heart in the words. Maybe that will change over time, but I don't think it will.  The key thing for me these days is to find a stream of ideas that I can send flowing out through my fingers.  Tapping a well of ideas is a good start but forcing it is like hauling thoughts out by buckets and dumping them onto the page.  They might pool together but they don't create anything interesting.  Tonight I'm trying to capture something worth writing.

There are streams inside my brain.  Most of the time one will surface and the words flow easily (if not always well).  Twice I have been able to find a way to stir the pooling water into a moving force.  Each time I had to go through a rough time of writing and re-writing, or even discarding large parts of the story.  But there are good ideas there, and it's been fun to dig in and find them.  So far, it's been a fun and rewarding experiment.  Writing nights are giving me time to be "artsy" and I'm loving it.

Why I Started Writing

For a long time I have wanted to write, but for dozens of reasons--none of them very good--I never did. I'm not talking about an occasional email to friends or family, either. For once I am listening to my wife and taking a chance at seeing what comes out of my brain once I let it take control of the keyboard.

So far, it's been a mixed bag.

About six weeks ago I started meeting with a group at the local library, and doing a little more at home. My writing is very much a work in progress, since having a good idea and writing a good story are two distinct things. I've got cupboards full of ingredients but no one would call me a cook. Likewise, just having ideas does not make someone a writer.

Here is where my adventure begins. Maybe some practice, reading and constructive criticism will help. In this blog I'll dump ideas, thoughts, lessons-learned and maybe parts of some stories. I want to see if the desires to write can be sated with an appetizer or if they will become a full course meal. Thanks to my wife for helping me through this first step.